Anthony (Cheremisov) of Oryol

Life

Born Ivan Ivanovich Cheremisov (Иван Иванович Черемисов) on November 17, 1939 to a family of workers in Ternovka, Voronezh region of Russia, Ivan entered the Moscow Theological Seminary to begin his theological studies that continued from 1965 to 1968. He then continued his education at the Moscow Theological Academy from which he graduated in 1972 with a degree of Candidate of Theology. Ivan undertook post-graduate studies, from 1972 to 1975. under the sponsorship of the Moscow Academy at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute in Switzerland, graduating with a bachelor's degree. While studying at the Bossey Institute, Ivan worked in the External Affairs Department of the Russian Orthodox Church.

A celibate, Ivan began his monastic career on April 7, 1971 while studying at the academy. He received a tonsure as a monk with the name Anthony at the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral at the Moscow Academy. During this time, the monk Anthony fulfilled his obedience as secretary to Metropolitan Juvenaly (Poyarkov) of Kolomenskoye and Krutiisy. Monk Anthony was ordained a deacon on April 14, 1971 and then a priest on November 4, 1972 while he continued his education.

In 1975, Fr. Anthony was assigned as the rural dean of the Vilnius Holy Spirit Monastery, followed by assignment, in 1979, as the senior priest of the Annunciation Church of Kaunus and rural dean of the Kaunas church district in present day Lithuania. He was elected hegumen on April 8, 1979.

In 1982, Fr. Anthony was assigned, until 1985, to the patriarchal representation church in Tokyo, Japan as the deputy archpriest. He return to Moscow to serve as the rural dean of the Danilov Monastery where he served from November 1986 to April 1989. While attached to Danilov Monastery, Fr. Anthony was raised, on March 25, 1987, to the dignity of archimandrite.

After his election to the episcopate in 1989, Archim. Anthony was consecrated Bishop of Vilnius and Lithuania at the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Danilov Monastery on April 22, 1989. On January 25, 1990, Bp. Anthony was assigned to the Tobolsk Diocese. Then on July 20, 1990, he was enthroned as bishop of the Krasnoyarsk and Yenisei diocese. On February 19, 1999 he was raised to the dignity of archbishop. Later, during the period of July 17, 1999 to December 29, 1999, Abp. Anthony was assigned the additional duty as administer of the Diocese of Abakan and Kizil. In October 2011, the Holy Synod traded sees between Abp. Anthony and Abp. Panteleimon of Oryol and Livny. [1]

Abp. Anthony has been the recipient of many church and secular awards, in addition to his membership in the Petrovskaya Academy of Science and Art and the Russian Geographical Society.